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THE GENERAL DEPARTMENT OF CUSTOMS - THE MINISTRY FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS

JOINT CIRCULAR No. 3/2000/TTLT-TCHQ-BNG OF JUNE 6, 2000 GUIDING THE IMPLEMENTATION OF ARTICLE 4 OF DECISION No. 10/1999/QD-TTg OF OCTOBER 27, 1999 OF THE PRIME MINISTER ON A NUMBER OF POLICIES REGARDING OVERSEAS VIETNAMESE

Pursuant to Article 5 of Decision No. 210/1999/QD-TTg of October 27, 1999 of the Prime Minister on a number of policies regarding overseas Vietnamese;

In order to unify the management and fully ensure the interests and responsibilities of Vietnamese having settled abroad who now return to the country to actively contribute to national construction;

The General Department of Customs and the Ministry for Foreign Affairs unanimously provide the following specific guidance for the implementation of Article 4 of Decision No. 210/1999/QD-TTg of October 27, 1999 of the Prime Minister on a number of preferential policies regarding the temporary import and re-export of four-seat motorcars and outfits and personal effects of overseas Vietnamese returning to work in the country:

I. GENERAL PROVISIONS

1. This Circular applies to Vietnamese having settled abroad who are intellectuals, specialists, skilled workers (overseas Vietnamese for short) now returning to the country and working for one year or longer at the invitation of a Vietnamese State agency with attestation by the inviting agency.

2. A number of terms used in this Circular are construed as follows:

a/ "Vietnamese State agencies" comprise the National Assembly, the Government, the Supreme People’s Procuracy, the Supreme People’s Court, ministries, ministerial-level agencies, agencies attached to the Government and the People’s Committees of the provinces and centrally-run cities.

b/ "Attestation by the inviting agency" is an attestation document bearing the seal and signature of the head of the Vietnamese State agency (mentioned at Point a, Item 2, Part I above) inviting the overseas Vietnamese to return and work in the country. This attestation comprises the following details:

- Name, number of passport, address in the residing country of the invited overseas Vietnamese.

- Working time in Vietnam.

- Specific work or project and plan in which the overseas Vietnamese takes part in Vietnam.

c/ "Working facilities" are the equipment, machinery and documents of the overseas Vietnamese in service of the work at the project in Vietnam.

d/ "Personal effects" comprise essential articles for living.

e/ "Tax exemption" is exemption of customs excise and related fees (except storage fees, transport charge and charge for similar services as currently prescribed) collected by the Customs Service when filling in the procedures.

3. In principle, all goods allowed for tax-free temporary import by the overseas Vietnamese after conclusion of his/her working term in Vietnam shall have to be re-exported. If they are offered as presents or gifts or assigned they must comply with current prescriptions of Vietnamese law.

4. When issuing the attestation document on temporary import, leaving back, re-export of cars, working facilities and personal effects to the overseas Vietnamese for the filling of the customs procedures, the Vietnamese State agency shall send one copy to the General Department of Customs for monitoring.

II. SPECIFIC STIPULATIONS ON CUSTOMS PROCEDURES REGARDING TEMPORARILY IMPORTED GOODS

A. TEMPORARY IMPORT OF MOTOR CAR

1. Conditions for temporary import of motor car:

The overseas Vietnamese defined at Item 1, Part I above, when returning to the country to work for one year or longer, shall be allowed to temporarily import free of tax a four-seat car as a means in service of his/her movement during his/her working time in Vietnam (this quota does not apply to his/her relatives) and must abide by the following conditions:

- The overseas Vietnamese who needs to import a car temporarily shall have to do it within the first six months after assignment to his/her job in Vietnam (from the date of his/her first entry into Vietnam).

- The car must be a brand-new car with standard driving wheel (on the left side of the car) as prescribed by Vietnamese law. If the car is a used one, its remaining quality must be from 70% upward and the importer must produce the certificate that he/she is the owner of the car.

- In case the car of the overseas Vietnamese is damaged by accident and can no longer be used, it must be certified by the Public Security agency. Its replacement by another temporarily imported car shall be considered only when there remain at least six months from the overseas Vietnamese’s working time in Vietnam and he/she has completed the procedure of liquidation of the used car at the Customs Department of the province or city where he/she has been granted the permit of temporary import.

2. Customs procedures for temporary import of cars:

The overseas Vietnamese shall attach to his/her application for tax-free temporary import of a car an attestation by the inviting Vietnamese State agency with the following contents:

- Name of the overseas Vietnamese, number of passport, nationality.

- Name of program or project of work with the Vietnamese State agency.

- Duration of work in Vietnam.

- Trademark and technical specifications of the car.

- Border gate of import.

He/she shall produce import papers related to the car.

The Customs Department of the province or city (where the Vietnamese State agency inviting the overseas Vietnamese to return to work in Vietnam has its office) shall issue the permit for tax-free temporary import of the car to the overseas Vietnamese.

- Where there is no organization of the Customs Service, the overseas Vietnamese shall go to the Customs Department of the province or city most convenient to him/her to be granted the permit.

The Customs Department of the province or city shall use the form of permit of import and export of non-commercial goods (according to Form HQ102) to issue the permit of tax-free temporary import of the car to the overseas Vietnamese as prescribed. The permit shall be issued in four copies (1 copy to be kept at the Customs Department of the province or city where the permit is issued, 2 copies to be handed to the goods owner for filling in the procedures of car import at the border-gate Customs Service (1 copy) and to fill in the procedures for circulation registration at the Public Security Agency (1 copy), and 1 to be sent to the General Department of Customs (in lieu of report).

3. Re-export of cars:

Before his/her exit from Vietnam (at the end of the working term) the overseas Vietnamese shall send an application to the Customs Department of the province or city which has issued the permit for temporary import of the car for a permit to re-export the car.

4. Procedures for assignment of cars:

After conclusion of the working term of the overseas Vietnamese in Vietnam, the car which has been allowed to be temporarily imported must be re-exported. If it is presented as a gift or present or assigned in Vietnam, the overseas Vietnamese must fill in the customs procedures and pay retroactive tax of various kinds (including import tax) as stipulated by the current tax laws before leaving Vietnam.

* The overseas Vietnamese shall send an application to the Customs Department of the province or city where the permit for temporary import of the car is issued, in which he/she must clearly state the reason for assigning the car.

* Conditions for car assignment:

+ The overseas Vietnamese has ended his/her working term in Vietnam.

+ For other reasons, they must be attested by the inviting Vietnamese State agency and accepted in writing by the Customs Department of the province or city.

- For the suobjects mentioned in Item 1, Part I of this Circular, if they assign cars among themselves or to those of preferential tax exemption as currently prescribed, they shall be exempt from import tax and other related taxes and fees. The Customs Service where the overseas Vietnamese are managed and monitored shall substract the car from the tax-free temporary import quota of the assigned suobject.

- The procedures of assignment of cars shall conform with the process of assignment of cars issued by the General Department of Customs.

B. TEMPORARY IMPORT OF WORKING FACILITIES AND PERSONAL EFFECTS:

1. Working facilities and personal effects of overseas Vietnamese:

- They are processed by the Customs Service right at the border gate.

- On the basis of the written attestations by Vietnamese State agencies stated at Point b, Item 2, Part I, the Customs Service at the border gates shall fill in the procedures for tax-free temporary import of the working facilities and personal effects.

* The facilities in service of the work of the overseas Vietnamese who takes them along for use during the time of his/her work with the Vietnamese State agency, which are allowed to be imported free of tax, comprise the following:

- Implements and equipment used in the laboratory.

- Specialized working tools.

- Scientific and technical documents and stationeries related to his/her work.

* Personal effects for use in daily life taken along by the overseas Vietnamese on his/her return for work in the country shall be exempt from tax one article for each kind for use during his/her working time in Vietnam (see attached list).

2. Baggage and other import-export goods of the overseas Vietnamese and their relatives:

- They shall be processed right at the entry-exit border gate (In case they are goods under the management of the specialized ministries or branches, they shall conform with the current prescriptions).

- The criteria for tax-free baggage shall conform with the prescriptions for visitors entering or leaving Vietnam through Vietnamese border gates.

3. Procedures for re-export of working facilities:

To re-export his/her working facilities the overseas Vietnamese shall produce the customs declaration forms at the time of their temporary import to the border-gate Customs Service where export procedures are made. In case the re-export is made at a border-gate other than the gate of temporary import, after completing the re-export procedures, the border gate customs making the re-export procedures shall have to copy and send the set of re-export dossier to the border-gate Customs Service which makes the initial procedures in order to settle the payment.

4. Procedures for temporarily imported goods allowed to be left back in Vietnam (not taken along when the overseas Vietnamese leaves Vietnam):

The overseas Vietnamese shall send an application to the Customs Department in the province or city where the permit for temporary import is issued stating the reason, the time of the leaving-over and the content of the left-over goods; the name and address of the agency accepting to keep the goods on his/her behalf, and attestation by the Vietnamese State agency allowing the leaving-over, so that the latter may consider for settlement according to its competence (for cars, the time-limit shall not exceed 12 months).

- The Vietnamese State agency which accepts to keep goods of overseas Vietnamese shall take responsibility before Vietnamese law for any complaints related to the left-over goods.

- In case the overseas Vietnamese is allowed to leave behind his/her car and other goods that have been allowed to be temporarily imported, the Customs Department in the province or city shall have to report to the General Department of Customs and inform the border-gate Customs Service where the overseas Vietnamese leaves Vietnam.

III. HANDLING OF VIOLATIONS

Any organizations or individuals that violate Decision No. 210/1999/QD-TTg of October 27, 1999 of the Prime Minister and this guiding Circular shall be handled according to current provisions of Vietnamese law.

IV. ORGANIZATION OF IMPLEMENTATION

1. This Circular takes effect 15 days after its signing.

2. The Vietnamese State agencies that invite the overseas Vietnamese to return to the country to work have the responsibility to coordinate with the General Department of Customs and the Ministry for Foreign Affairs to ensure the strict implementation of the stipulations in Article 4 of Decision No. 210/1999/QD-TTg of October 27, 1999 of the Prime Minister and this Circular.

Quarterly, the inviting State agencies of Vietnam shall have to inform the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of the list of overseas Vietnamese who are invited and covered by this Circular so that the Ministry for Foreign Affairs can integrate them into a sum-up notice to the General Department of Customs.

3. The General Department of Customs and the Ministry for Foreign Affairs shall have to coordinate, consider and settle in time the difficulties arising in the process of implementing this Circular.

4. The Directors of the Customs Departments in the provinces and cities shall have to organize and direct the relevant Customs agencies to implement the stipulations in this Circular and post them up at the prescribed places so that everybody can know and carry them out.

For the General Director of Customs

Deputy General Director
NGUYEN NGOC TUC

For the Minister for Foreign Affairs

Vice Minister
NGUYEN TAM CHIEN

LIST OF PERSONAL EFFECTS ALLOWED FOR TAX-FREE IMPORT BY OVERSEAS VIETNAMESE

(issued together with Joint Circular No.03/2000/TTLT-TCHQ-BNG of June 6, 2000)

Ordinal Names of utensils Quantity Notes

number and articles

1 Radio 01

2 Recorder 01

3 CD player 01

4 Cassette player 01

5 Television set 01

6 Video player 01

7 Personal computer 01

8 Washing machine 01

9 Electric oven 01

10 Microwave oven 01

11 Air conditioner 01 (Not exceeding 18,000 PTU)

12 Refrigerator 01

13 Camera 01

14 Video camera 01

15 Other personal 01

electric appliances

(electric shaver,

hairdryer...)